{"id":89771,"date":"2026-08-24T16:14:13","date_gmt":"2026-08-24T06:14:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.neds.com.au\/blog\/?p=89771"},"modified":"2026-08-26T09:12:32","modified_gmt":"2026-08-25T23:12:32","slug":"2026-afl-wild-card-finals-tips-predictions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.neds.com.au\/blog\/2026\/08\/2026-afl-wild-card-finals-tips-predictions\/","title":{"rendered":"2026 AFL Wild Card Finals Tips & Predictions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

With the ladder locked and finals seeding officially set, the focus turns to the AFL’s inaugural Wild Card Weekend with two evenly matched, All-Melbourne affairs set to play out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The MCG comes to life on Friday night for a must-see clash between the feisty Bulldogs and the heavily wounded Magpies, before the Dees look to right last week’s wrongs and down Carlton on Saturday night – right back on footy’s hallowed turf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There’s not much separating each team in their respective markets, so for a comprehensive look at both games, check out our AFL Wild Card Preview right here!<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

\n
\n
\n \n
\n <\/use><\/svg><\/span>\n
\n
Western Bulldogs<\/div>\n
vs<\/div>\n
Collingwood<\/div>\n
Friday 28th August 2026 7:40 PM (MCG)<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/use><\/svg><\/span>\n <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n

The first Wild Card clash\u00a0shapes as\u00a0a tight tussle with recent encounters between the\u00a0Dogs and Collingwood\u00a0going right down to the wire.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Dogs prevailed by five points when they\u00a0last met Collingwood in Round 12, although\u00a0there\u2019s\u00a0plenty to be said about the Pies\u2019 fourth quarter comeback that saw them erase a three-goal deficit\u00a0and nearly pull off a come-from-behind win.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Injuries have taken a large toll on these two clubs ever since, and the Dogs might be licking their lips after Craig McRae made the risky decision to play a full squad featuring veteran Scott Pendlebury and\u00a0defensive\u00a0lynchpin Brayden Maynard\u00a0in the loss to Brisbane last week.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The two Collingwood superstars suffered serious injuries that have ruled them out for this clash, while the Dogs might have some positive news (finally) with Tim English a chance at returning to the ruck.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Looking ahead, the obvious argument is that the Pies are better suited to playing at the MCG, but they\u2019ll have their work cut out against an in-form Dogs team that could be a major dark horse after drawing with\u00a0Carlton and\u00a0then going on to defeat Melbourne over the last fortnight.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As is always the case, the Dogs kicking straight in front of goal could mean the difference between an extended season or a holiday, particularly for a team that has ranked bottom half in points all year.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

At the same time, the Dogs have been great around the clearances and\u00a0much better at limiting turnover \u2013\u00a0two areas that cost the Pies last week against the reigning premiers.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Inside 50 entries have also proven hard to come by for both clubs across the year, lending itself to a low-scoring game.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Again, Aaron Naughton\u2019s fitness could be key for the Dogs – and you\u00a0can\u2019t\u00a0discount a McRae coaching masterclass – but with the Pies licking their wounds, the price on offer for the Bulldogs is hard to ignore.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Prediction:<\/strong> Bulldogs to Win\u00a0@\u00a0$2.00<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Value:<\/strong> Bulldogs\u00a0to Win & Under 169.5 Total Points\u00a0@\u00a0$3.70<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Player Pick:<\/strong> Ed Richards 28+ Disposals\u00a0@\u00a0$1.85<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\n Bet Now<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
\n \n
\n <\/use><\/svg><\/span>\n
\n
Melbourne<\/div>\n
vs<\/div>\n
Collingwood<\/div>\n
Saturday 29th August 2026 7:35 PM (MCG)<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/use><\/svg><\/span>\n <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n

Another tough game to try and tip with recent history suggesting it could be decided by a goal either way.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Dees downed the Blues by 23 points when they met in late March, but\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0worth noting the\u00a0previous\u00a0four clashes between these two sides were all decided by six points or fewer.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Carlton is clearly a much different side to the one the Dees faced earlier\u00a0in the season, and with a five-game unbeaten run still intact heading into the finals, the sky might be the limit for newly appointed coach, Josh Fraser.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Melbourne have been the big overachievers this season, but\u00a0an exit on Saturday night would\u00a0probably have\u00a0Stephen King feeling like his side still fell short of their ceiling.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Further proving that a week in footy is a long time, last week\u2019s defeat to the Bulldogs\u00a0has many\u00a0questioning\u00a0the legitimacy of Melbourne\u2019s\u00a0finals\u00a0chances,\u00a0especially with Jacob van Rooyen still missing from the forward line for another two weeks.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Injuries around Jake Lever\u00a0have also cast some doubt\u00a0around Melbourne\u2019s ability to defend, which they did exceptionally well when they last met the Blues, holding them to 13 fewer inside 50 entries.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The recent form of Patrick Cripps, Sam Walsh, and Jagga Smith help swing the odds in\u00a0favour\u00a0of the Blues, while the\u00a0very best\u00a0of Harry McKay would make Carlton hard to beat.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s\u00a0been a fairytale-like season for Melbourne in many regards, but with a few hiccups against\u00a0finals\u00a0contenders over the last two and a half months, the Blues get the edge in this one.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Prediction:<\/strong> Carlton\u00a0to Win\u00a0@\u00a0$1.73<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Value:<\/strong> Carlton 1-39\u00a0@\u00a0$2.30<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Player Pick:<\/strong> Harry McKay 2+ Goals\u00a0@\u00a0$1.70<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\n Bet Now<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

With the ladder locked and finals seeding officially set, the focus turns to the AFL’s inaugural Wild Card Weekend with two evenly matched, All-Melbourne affairs set to play out. The MCG comes to life on Friday night for a must-see clash between the feisty Bulldogs and the heavily wounded Magpies, before the Dees look to right last week’s wrongs and down Carlton on Saturday night – right back on footy’s hallowed turf. There’s not much separating each team in their respective markets, so for a comprehensive look at both games, check out our AFL Wild Card Preview right here! 0…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":89772,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[33],"hub_post_cat":[],"class_list":["post-89771","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-australian-rules","tag-afl-tips"],"acf":{"md_tip_date":"","md_tip_date_end":"","md_market_url":"","tip_date":"24\/08\/2026","event_country":"Australia"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.neds.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89771","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.neds.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.neds.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.neds.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.neds.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=89771"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.neds.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89771\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":89943,"href":"https:\/\/www.neds.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89771\/revisions\/89943"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.neds.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/89772"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.neds.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=89771"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.neds.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=89771"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.neds.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=89771"},{"taxonomy":"hub_post_cat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.neds.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hub_post_cat?post=89771"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}